Energy detection threshold adaptation for licensed assisted access of lte in unlicensed band

ABSTRACT

When performing a contention protocol, such as Listen-Before-Talk (LBT), an Long Term Evolution (LTE)-Licensed Assisted Access (LAA) node dynamically adapts the ED threshold used by the LTE-LAA node depending on whether other transmission nodes are detected at the frequency components that are to be used by the LTE-LAA node. In one implementation, the ED threshold value may initially be set to a conservative value, and when other transmissions nodes are not detected, the ED threshold value may be set to a more aggressive value. In another implementation, the ED threshold value may initially be set to a more aggressive value, and only when another transmission node is detected, the ED threshold value may be set to a more conservative value. In yet another possible implementation, the ED threshold value and the transmit power may be proportionally modified, for a particular UE, based on a parameter associated with the UE.

RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No.15/751,127 filed on Feb. 7, 2018, which claims the benefit of U.S.Provisional Patent Application No. 62/204,907, which was filed on Aug.13, 2015; and of PCT/US15/00447, filed on Dec. 26, 2015, the contents ofwhich are hereby incorporated by reference as though fully set forthherein.

BACKGROUND

The demand for wireless broadband data has consistently increased.Unlicensed spectrum (i.e., frequency spectrum that does not require alicense from an appropriate regulating entity) is being considered bywireless cellular network operators to increase the capacity of existingservices that are offered over licensed spectrum.

The use of unlicensed spectrum in the Third Generation PartnershipProject (3GPP) Long Term Evolution-Advanced (LTE-A) system has beenproposed as Licensed Assisted Access (LAA). Under LAA, the LTE standardis extended into unlicensed frequency deployments, thus enablingoperators and vendors to maximally leverage the existing or plannedinvestments in LTE hardware in the radio and core network.

One concern with LAA is the co-existence of the LTE radio nodes andother radio access technologies (RATs), such as WiFi and/or other LAAnetworks deployed by other operators using other unlicensed radio nodes.To enable the co-existence of the LTE radio nodes and other unlicensednodes, listen-before-talk (LBT) (also called Clear Channel Assessment(CCA)) has been proposed. LBT is a contention protocol in which the LTEradio node determines whether a particular frequency channel is alreadyoccupied (e.g., by a WiFi node) before using the particular frequencychannel. That is, with LBT, data packets may only be transmitted when achannel is sensed to be idle.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Embodiments will be readily understood by the following detaileddescription in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. To facilitatethis description, like reference numerals may designate like structuralelements. Embodiments are illustrated by way of example and not by wayof limitation in the figures of the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 1 is a diagram of an example environment in which systems and/ormethods described herein may be implemented;

FIG. 2 is a flowchart illustrating a process that illustrates anoverview of LBT;

FIGS. 3-5 are flowcharts illustrating an processes that illustratesdifferent embodiments for performing LBT using energy detectionthreshold adaptation for LTE-LAA;

FIG. 6 is a diagram conceptually illustrating an example implementationconsistent with the process shown in FIG. 5; and

FIG. 7 illustrates example components of an electronic device.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

The following detailed description refers to the accompanying drawings.The same reference numbers in different drawings may identify the sameor similar elements. It is to be understood that other embodiments maybe utilized and structural or logical changes may be made withoutdeparting from the scope of the present disclosure. Therefore, thefollowing detailed description is not to be taken in a limiting sense,and the scope of embodiments in accordance with the present disclosureis defined by the appended claims and their equivalents.

Existing WiFi (i.e., Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers(IEEE) 802.11-based wireless networking standards) technologies, toenable the co-existence of multiple WiFi Access Points (APs), may usethe Carrier Sense Multiple Access with Collision Avoidance (CSMA/CA)technique to enable co-existence between multiple WiFi nodes. UnderCSMA/CA, when a WiFi transmitter (e.g., a WiFi access point (AP))detects a WiFi preamble of another WiFi transmitter, with a receivedenergy level of at-least −82 dBm (decibel-milliwatts), the WiFitransmitter is required to defer its transmission based on a durationincluded in the detected preamble (physical carrier sensing). In somesituations, the WiFi transmitter may not be able to detect the WiFipreamble. For instance, an LTE-LAA node may use the same frequency bandas the WiFi transmitter. In this situation, the WiFi transmitter may usea −62 dBm threshold to determine when to defer its transmission. TheWiFi transmitter may defer transmission at least until the detectedenergy level is below −62 dBm. In this manner, existing WiFiimplementations may use a predetermined energy detection (ED) thresholds(e.g., −82 dBm and −62 dBm) when determining whether a channel is“clear” for transmission.

ED thresholds may be used by LTE-LAA nodes during the LBT contentionprotocol to sense other LTE-LAA nodes as well as non LTE-LAA nodes(e.g., WiFi transmitters). In particular, under LAA, an LTE-LAA node maydefer its transmission at least until the energy received by is lessthan a certain ED threshold. However, using predetermined ED thresholds,for LTE-LAA nodes, may be problematic for good co-existence between theLTE-LAA nodes and between transmitters of other RATs (e.g., WiFitransmitters). For example, WiFi throughput, in certain scenarios suchas in indoor operation, can be significantly degraded in the presence ofLTE-LAA nodes using a −62 dBm ED threshold. A conservative ED thresholdof −82 dBm may enable good co-existence between WiFi and LAA in indoorscenarios. In other scenarios, however, such as an outdoor scenario, theuse of −62 dBm as the ED threshold can enable good co-existence betweenWiFi and LAA.

Consistent with aspects described herein, when performing a contentionprotocol, such as LBT, an LTE-LAA node may dynamically adapt the EDthreshold used by the LTE-LAA node depending on whether othertransmission nodes are detected at the frequency components that are tobe used by the LTE-LAA node. In one implementation, the ED thresholdvalue may initially be set to a conservative value, and when othertransmissions nodes are not detected, the ED threshold value may be setto a more aggressive value. In another implementation, the ED thresholdvalue may initially be set to a more aggressive value, and only whenanother transmission node is detected, the ED threshold value may be setto a more conservative value. In yet another possible implementation,the ED threshold value and the transmit power may be proportionallymodified, for a particular UE, based on a parameter associated with theUE.

FIG. 1 is a diagram of an example environment 100, in which systemsand/or methods described herein may be implemented. As illustrated,environment 100 may include User Equipment (UE) 110, which may obtainnetwork connectivity from wireless network 120. Although a single UE 110is shown, for simplicity, in FIG. 1, in practice, multiple UEs 110 mayoperate in the context of a wireless network. Wireless network 120 mayprovide access to one or more external networks, such as packet datanetwork (PDN) 150. The wireless network may include radio access network(RAN) 130 and core network 140. RAN 130 may be a E-UTRA based radioaccess network or another type of radio access network. Some or all ofRAN 130 may be associated with a network operator that controls orotherwise manages core network 140. Core network 140 may include anInternet Protocol (IP)-based network.

UE 110 may include a portable computing and communication device, suchas a personal digital assistant (PDA), a smart phone, a cellular phone,a laptop computer with connectivity to a cellular wireless network, atablet computer, etc. UE 110 may also include non-portable computingdevices, such as desktop computers, consumer or business appliances, orother devices that have the ability to wirelessly connect to RAN 130.

UEs 110 may be designed to operate using LTE-LAA. For instance, UEs 110may include radio circuitry that is capable of simultaneously receivingmultiple carriers: a first, primary, carrier using licensed spectrum anda second carrier using unlicensed spectrum. The second carrier maycorrespond to, for example, the unlicensed 5 GHz spectrum. This spectrummay commonly be used by WiFi devices. A goal of LTE-LAA may be to notimpact WiFi services more than an additional WiFi network on the samecarrier.

UEs 110 capable of operating on the unlicensed band may be configured tomake measurements to support unlicensed band operation, includingproviding feedback when the UE is in the coverage area of an LTE-LAAnode. Once the connection is activated to allow use on the unlicensedband, existing Channel Quality Information (CQI) feedback may allow theevolved NodeBs (eNBs) 136 to determine what kind of quality could beachieved on the unlicensed band compared to the licensed band. Downlinkonly mode is particularly suited for situations where data volumes aredominated by downlink traffic.

RAN 130 may represent a 3GPP access network that includes one or moreRATs. RAN 130 may particularly include multiple base stations, referredto as eNBs 136. eNBs 136 may include eNBs that provide coverage to arelatively large (macro cell) area or a relatively small (small cell)area. Small cells may be deployed to increase system capacity byincluding a coverage area within a macro cell. Small cells may includepicocells, femtocells, and/or home NodeBs. eNBs 136 can potentiallyinclude remote radio heads (RRH), such as RRHs 138. RRHs 138 can extendthe coverage of an eNB by distributing the antenna system of the eNB.RRHs 138 may be connected to eNB 136 by optical fiber (or by anotherlow-latency connection).

In the discussion herein, an LTE-LAA node may correspond to eNB 136(small cell or macro cell) or RRH 138. The LTE-LAA node may also bereferred to as an “LTE-LAA transmission point,” “LTE-LAA transmitter,”or “LAA eNB.” For simplicity, eNB 136 will be discussed herein ascorresponding to an LTE-LAA node. In some implementations, the LTE-LAAnode (using unlicensed frequency) may be co-located with a correspondingeNB that uses licensed frequency. The licensed frequency eNBs and theLTE-LAA node may maximize downlink bandwidth by performing carrieraggregation of the licensed and unlicensed bands.

Core network 140 may include an IP-based network. In the 3GPP networkarchitecture, core network 140 may include an Evolved Packet Core (EPC).As illustrated, core network 140 may include serving gateway (SGW) 142,Mobility Management Entity (MME) 144, and packet data network gateway(PGW) 146. Although certain network devices are illustrated inenvironment 100 as being part of RAN 130 and core network 140, whether anetwork device is labeled as being in the “RAN” or the “core network” ofenvironment 100 may be an arbitrary decision that may not affect theoperation of wireless network 120.

SGW 142 may include one or more network devices that aggregate trafficreceived from one or more eNBs 136. SGW 142 may generally handle user(data) plane traffic. MME 144 may include one or more computation andcommunication devices that perform operations to register UE 110 withcore network 140, establish bearer channels associated with a sessionwith UE 110, hand off UE 110 from one eNB to another, and/or performother operations. MME 144 may generally handle control plane traffic.

PGW 146 may include one or more devices that act as the point ofinterconnect between core network 140 and external IP networks, such asPDN 150, and/or operator IP services. PGW 146 may route packets to andfrom the access networks, and the external IP networks.

PDN 150 may include one or more packet-based networks. PDN 150 mayinclude one or more external networks, such as a public network (e.g.,the Internet) or proprietary networks that provide services that areprovided by the operator of core network 140 (e.g., IP multimedia(IMS)-based services, transparent end-to-end packet-switched streamingservices (PSSs), or other services).

A number of interfaces are illustrated in FIG. 1. An interface may referto a physical or logical connection between devices in environment 100.The illustrated interfaces may be 3GPP standardized interfaces. Forexample, as illustrated, communication eNBs 136 may communicate with SGW142 and MME 144 using the S1 interface (e.g., as defined by the 3GPPstandards). eNBs 136 may communicate with one another via the X2interface.

The quantity of devices and/or networks, illustrated in FIG. 1, isprovided for explanatory purposes only. In practice, there may beadditional devices and/or networks; fewer devices and/or networks;different devices and/or networks; or differently arranged devicesand/or networks than illustrated in FIG. 1. Alternatively, oradditionally, one or more of the devices of environment 100 may performone or more functions described as being performed by another one ormore of the devices of environment 100. Furthermore, while “direct”connections are shown in FIG. 1, these connections should be interpretedas logical communication pathways, and in practice, one or moreintervening devices (e.g., routers, gateways, modems, switches, hubs,etc.) may be present.

FIG. 2 is a flowchart illustrating a process 200 that provides anoverview of LBT. Process 200 may be performed by, for example, eNB 136(i.e., by an eNB that acts as an LTE-LAA node).

Process 200 may include assembling data that is to be transmitted (block210). The data may be assembled, for example, as a packet or as anotherdata structure (e.g., a frame), by eNB 136, and for transmission to UE110.

Process 200 may further include determining whether the channel, forwhich the data is to be transmitted, is idle (block 220). Thedetermination of whether a particular frequency channel is idle mayinclude measuring the energy associated with the channel and comparingthe measured energy value to a threshold. In some implementations, thethreshold may be dynamically or semi-statically selected. For example,depending on the deployment situation, the threshold value may beselected between −62 dBm and −82 dBm. In some implementations, thedetermination of whether the channel is idle may additionally involvephysical carrier sensing to read information transmitted in thefrequency channel. For example, for a WiFi transmission, the WiFipreamble or beacon may be read to obtain information.

When the channel is determined to not be idle (block 220—No), the eNBmay perform a back-off procedure (block 230). The back-off procedure mayinclude waiting a predetermined amount of time before attempting to usethe channel again, waiting a random amount of time before attempting touse the channel again, or waiting an amount of time that is determinedfrom another source (e.g., a WiFi preamble). In some implementations,the back-off procedure may potentially include the selection ofdifferent frequency channel.

When the channel is determined to be idle (block 220—No), the assembleddata may be transmitted on the channel (block 240). In this manner,LTE-LAA deployments may co-exist with other RATs or with LTE-LAAdeployments from other network operators.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart illustrating an example process 300 thatillustrates one example embodiment for performing LBT using ED thresholdadaptation for LTE-LAA. Process 300 may be performed by UE 110 or by eNB136 (i.e., by an eNB that acts as an LTE-LAA node).

Process 300 may include initially setting the ED threshold to aconservative value (block 310). In one implementation, the conservativeED threshold may be set at a value of −72 dBm. Alternatively, theconservative ED threshold may be set at a value of −82 dBm. Moregenerally, the conservative value may be at the lower half of the rangeof potential ED threshold values. For example, if the range of potentialED threshold values is between −52 dBm and −82 dBm, a conservative EDthreshold value may be between −72 dBm and −82 dBm for an eNB operatingon 20 MHz channel bandwidth.

Process 300 may further include determining whether other transmissionnodes are detected at the frequency components corresponding to the LAAcarrier (block 320). In one implementation, whether other transmissionnodes are detected at the frequency components corresponding to the LAAcarrier may include determining whether a nearby WiFi transmitter (e.g.,a WiFi AP) is present. The determination may potentially be made by eNB136, UE 110, or both eNB 136 and UE 110. Example implementations for thedetection of a nearby WiFi transmitter will be described in more detailbelow.

In some implementations, the detected other transmission nodes of block320 may include other LTE-LAA nodes, such as other LTE-LAA nodesassociated with other network operators (i.e., with a network operatordifferent than the network operator that manages RAN 130).

When another transmission node is not detected (block 320—No), process300 may further include setting the ED threshold to a more aggressivevalue. In one implementation, the more aggressive ED threshold may beset to a value of −62 dBm. With a more aggressive value, LBT back-off isless likely to be performed. More generally, the aggressive may be atthe upper half of the range of potential ED threshold values. Forexample, if the range of potential ED threshold values is between −52dBm and −82 dBm, an aggressive ED threshold value may be between −52 dBmand −62 dBm.

Process 300 may further include performing the LBT operation using theset ED threshold value (block 340). As shown in FIG. 3, the set EDthreshold value may be the conservative value when another transmissionnode is detected (block 320—Yes) or the more aggressive value whenanother transmission node is not detected (block 320—No). The LBToperation may be performed pursuant to process 200 (FIG. 2). Forexample, the LBT operation may include the operations associated withblock 220 and 230 of process 200, or, alternatively or additionally, theLBT operation may include the operations associated with blocks 210-240of process 200.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart illustrating an example process 400 thatillustrates a second example embodiment for performing LBT using EDthreshold adaptation for LTE-LAA. Process 400 may be performed by UE 110or by eNB 136 (i.e., by an eNB that acts as an LTE-LAA node).

Process 400 may include initially setting the ED threshold to arelatively aggressive value (block 410). In one implementation, theaggressive ED threshold may be set at a value of −62 dBm.

Process 400 may further include determining whether other transmissionnodes are detected at the frequency components corresponding to the LAAcarrier (block 420). In one implementation, whether other transmissionnodes are detected at the frequency components corresponding to the LAAcarrier may include determining whether a nearby WiFi transmitter (e.g.,a WiFi AP) is present. The determination may potentially be made by eNB136, UE 110, or both eNB 136 and UE 110. Example implementations for thedetection of a nearby WiFi transmitter are described in more detailbelow.

In some implementations, the detected other transmission nodes of block320 may include other LTE-LAA nodes, such as other LTE-LAA nodesassociated with other network operators (i.e., with a network operatordifferent than the network operator that manages RAN 130).

When another transmission node is detected (block 420—Yes), process 400may further include setting the ED threshold to a more conservativevalue. In one implementation, the more conservative ED threshold may beset to a value of −82 dBm. Alternatively, the more conservative EDthreshold may be set to a value of −78 dBm. With the more conservativeED value, LBT back-off is more likely to be performed.

Process 400 may further include performing the LBT operation using theset ED threshold value (block 440). As shown in FIG. 4, the set EDthreshold value may be the conservative value when another transmissionnode is detected (block 420—Yes) or the more aggressive value whenanother transmission node is not detected (block 420—No). The LBToperation may be performed pursuant to process 400 (FIG. 4). Forexample, the LBT operation may include the operations associated withblock 220 and 230 of process 200, or, alternatively or additionally, theLBT operation may include the operations associated with blocks 210-240of process 200.

In processes 300 and 400, detection of another frequency node, such as aWiFi transmission node, is performed (e.g., blocks 320 and 420). Anumber of different techniques may be used to detect the presence of aWiFi transmission node, some of which will next be discussed.

In one possible implementation for detecting the presence of a WiFitransmission node, eNB 136 may detect the presence of WiFi beaconframes. A beacon frame is one of the management frames in IEEE 802.11based Wireless Local Area Networks (WLANs). Beacon frames may betransmitted periodically to announce the presence of a WiFi LAN. Todetect the presence of a WiFi transmission point, eNB 136 may detect thepresence of beacon frames with a signal strength that is greater thanthe ED threshold value (e.g., −82 dBm).

In a second possible implementation for detecting the presence of anearby WiFi transmission node, WLAN measurements may be obtained by UE110. The WLAN measurements may be reported, by UE 110, to eNB 136. Forexample, UE 110 may report the measurements via licensed frequencychannels. In one implementation, the UE 110 may report the ReceivedSignal Strength Indicator (RSSI) associated with WiFi beacons, BasicService Set Identifier (BSSIDs) included in the WiFi beacons, and/orother metrics obtained from the beacons, such as WiFi channelutilization, WiFi transmission bandwidth, etc. In this manner, UE 110may potentially assist eNB 136 to identify the presence of WiFi on thecomponent carriers used for transmission (e.g., for downlink bursttransmission). The WLAN measurement report, transmitted by UE 110, maybe performed periodically (or at some other interval) or event driven,such as based on the detection of a new WiFi AP or based on a previouslydetected WiFi AP no longer being detected.

In a third possible implementation for detecting the presence of anearby WiFi transmission node, UE 110 and/or eNB 136 may detect the WiFipreamble. The WiFi preamble may be the first part of the Physical LayerConvergence Protocol/Procedure (PLCP) Protocol Data Unit (PDU).

In some implementations, multiple ones of the above-discussed threepossible implementations for detecting the presence of a nearby WiFitransmission node may be used. For information detected by UE 110, UE110 may be configured to transmit a WiFi measurement report, to eNB 136,if the measurement, made by UE 110, changes significantly from theprevious measurement reported to eNB 136. For example, a measurementreport may be transmitted to eNB 136 when the number of observed WiFiAPs changes.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart illustrating an example process 500 thatillustrates a third example embodiment for performing LBT using EDthreshold adaptation for LTE-LAA. Process 500 may be performed by, forexample, eNB 136 (i.e., by an eNB that acts as an LTE-LAA node).

In general, with respect to process 500, eNB 136 may proportionallydetermine, on a per-UE basis, an ED threshold and the transmit (Tx)power to use for downlink transmissions of the data once the channel hasbeen acquired. This “proportional role,” as used by eNB 136, may act tobalance two behaviors: (1) by raising the ED threshold, eNB 136 can bemore aggressive in accessing the channel; and (2) by correspondinglylowering the Tx power, eNB 136 can create less interference withneighboring transmitters, thus allowing the neighboring transmitters tomore frequently access the channel. Stated equivalently, with theproportional rule, by lowering the ED threshold, eNB 136 can be lessaggressive (more conservative) in accessing the channel but may thencorrespondingly raise the Tx power to provide better throughput when thechannel is being used. With the proportional rule, as described herein,the spatial reuse benefits of raising the ED threshold can be preserved,while ensuring fairness and co-existence due to the lower Tx power.

Process 500 may include selecting a modifier, called a herein, that willbe used to proportionally modify the ED threshold and the eNB transmitpower (block 510). A modifier can be different for different UEs (block510). In one implementation, the modifier may be selected on a per-UEbasis.

As one example, a may be selected as being between zero and 15 dBm,where a is set to zero for UEs that are close (e.g., within a certainphysical range of eNB 136), 15 dBm for UEs that are not close to eNB 136(e.g., near the outer edge of the cell), and linearly scaled betweenzero and 15 dBm for UEs that are between the “close” and “not close”points. In this example, the distance of each particular UE, relative tothe cell boundary may be used to modify α. In other implementations,other parameters relating to UE 110, such as the received signalstrength, relating to UE 110, may be used to determine α. In someimplementations, α may be determined based on information received via alicensed band.

Process 500 may further include proportionally modifying the EDthreshold and transmit power based on α (block 520). In oneimplementation, the ED threshold value may be increased based on α (orbased on a value obtained from α) and the transmit power, of eNB 136 toUE 110, many correspondingly be decreased based on α (or based on avalue obtained from α). For example, the following expressions may beused to modify the ED threshold and the transmit power.

ED_Threshold=Initial_ED_Threshold+ED_Thresh_Raise_Value; and

Tx_Power=Max_Power−Tx_Power_Reduction_Value

In the above expressions, “Ed_Threshold” refers to the ED thresholdvalue, “Initial ED_Threshold” refers to the default or base ED thresholdvalue, “ED_Thresh_Raise_Value” refers to the amount to increase thedefault value of the ED threshold, “Tx_Power” refers to the transmitpower of eNB 136 or UE 110, “Max_Power” refers to the maximum possibletransmit power, and “Tx_Power_Reduction_Value” refers to the amount toreduce the maximum possible transmit power. In one implementation, ED_Thresh_Raise_Value and Tx_Power_Reduction_Value may both be set equalto α.

As an example of the expressions for ED_Threshold and Tx_Power, as givenin the previous paragraph, consider the situation in which the initialED threshold is −82 dBm, the maximum transmit power is 23 dBm, and α isdetermined to be 10 dBm. In this situation, the ED threshold may becalculated as −72 dBm (−82+10) and the transmit power may be calculatedas 13 dBm (23−10). Thus, as the ED threshold is made more aggressive,the transmit power may proportionally be decreased. In other words, theED threshold and the transmit power may be modified in an inverse mannerwith respect to one another.

Process 500 may further include performing the LBT operation using themodified ED threshold and the transmit power (block 530). For example,the LBT operation may include the operations associated with block 220and 230 of process 200, or, alternatively or additionally, the LBToperation may include the operations associated with blocks 210-240 ofprocess 200.

FIG. 6 is a diagram conceptually illustrating an example implementationconsistent with process 500. In FIG. 6, assume that eNB 136communicates, using licensed and unlicensed channels, with UEs 610 and620. The communication via the unlicensed channels may be performed viaLTE-LAA.

In FIG. 6, assume that eNB 136 is determined to be relatively close toUE 610. For example, via LTE-based communications in the licensed band,eNB 136 may determine that UE 610 is near eNB 136 and/or receives a goodsignal strength signal from eNB 136. eNB 136 may correspondinglydetermine that α, for UE 610, should be set to zero. As shown, assumingthat the default or previously set ED threshold for UE 610 is −72 dBmand the default or maximum transmit power is 23 dBm, the proportionallymodified ED threshold value and transmit power may remain at −72 dBm and23 dBm, respectively.

Assume that UE 620 is determined to be farther away from eNB 136. Forexample, via LTE-based communications in the licensed band, eNB 136 maydetermine that UE 620 is near the edge of the coverage area provided byeNB 136 and/or receives a poor signal from eNB 136. eNB 136 maycorrespondingly determine that α, for UE 610, should be set to 10 dBm.As shown, assuming that the default or previously set ED threshold forUE 610 is −72 dBm and the default or maximum transmit power is 23 dBm,the proportionally modified ED threshold value and transmit power may be−62 dBm and 13 dBm, respectively.

The above-discussion for the setting of the ED threshold for LBT maytypically apply in the downlink direction. In some implementations,however, uplink transmissions may be made using LTE-LAA. For example, itmay be desirable for UE 110 to perform LBT for uplink Physical UplinkShared CHannel (PUSCH) transmissions.

In some implementations, the ED threshold that should be used at UE 110to perform LBT may be indicated by eNB 136. The ED threshold value at UE110 can be different than that used at eNB 136. In one embodiment, UE110 may always use a fixed (static) ED threshold, such as −62 Bm. In asecond possible embodiment, UE 110 may use the same ED threshold that isused by eNB 136. In a third possible embodiment, UE 110 may use the EDthreshold value used by eNB 136, plus an offset. In the second and thirdembodiments, the threshold may be signaled, semi-statically, by higherlevel signaling. Alternatively or additionally, the ED threshold can besignaled dynamically by Dedicated Control Information (DCI) using Layer1 signaling. In some implementations, the ED threshold value can be cellspecific (common to all UEs in the cell) or can be UE specific(different UEs within a cell may have different ED thresholds).

As used herein, the term “circuitry” or “processing circuitry” may referto, be part of, or include an Application Specific Integrated Circuit(ASIC), an electronic circuit, a processor (shared, dedicated, orgroup), and/or memory (shared, dedicated, or group) that execute one ormore software or firmware programs, a combinational logic circuit,and/or other suitable hardware components that provide the describedfunctionality. In some embodiments, the circuitry may be implemented in,or functions associated with the circuitry may be implemented by, one ormore software or firmware modules. In some embodiments, circuitry mayinclude logic, at least partially operable in hardware.

Embodiments described herein may be implemented into a system using anysuitably configured hardware and/or software. FIG. 7 illustrates, forone embodiment, example components of an electronic device 700. Inembodiments, the electronic device 700 may be a user equipment UE, aneNB (such as eNB 136), a transmission point, or some other appropriateelectronic device. In some embodiments, the electronic device 700 mayinclude application circuitry 702, baseband circuitry 704, RadioFrequency (RF) circuitry 706, front-end module (FEM) circuitry 708 andone or more antennas 760, coupled together at least as shown.

Application circuitry 702 may include one or more applicationprocessors. For example, the application circuitry 702 may includecircuitry such as, but not limited to, one or more single-core ormulti-core processors. The processor(s) may include any combination ofgeneral-purpose processors and dedicated processors (e.g., graphicsprocessors, application processors, etc.). The processors may be coupledwith and/or may include memory/storage, such as storage medium 703, andmay be configured to execute instructions stored in the memory/storageto enable various applications and/or operating systems to run on thesystem. In some implementations, storage medium 703 may include anon-transitory computer-readable medium. Application circuitry 702 may,in some embodiments, connect to or include one or more sensors, such asenvironmental sensors, cameras, etc.

Baseband circuitry 704 may include circuitry such as, but not limitedto, one or more single-core or multi-core processors. The basebandcircuitry 704 may include one or more baseband processors and/or controllogic to process baseband signals received from a receive signal path ofthe RF circuitry 706 and to generate baseband signals for a transmitsignal path of the RF circuitry 706. Baseband processing circuitry 704may interface with the application circuitry 702 for generation andprocessing of the baseband signals and for controlling operations of theRF circuitry 706. For example, in some embodiments, the basebandcircuitry 704 may include a second generation (2G) baseband processor704 a, third generation (3G) baseband processor 704 b, fourth generation(4G) baseband processor 704 c, and/or other baseband processor(s) 704dfor other existing generations, generations in development or to bedeveloped in the future (e.g., fifth generation (5G), 7G, etc.). Thebaseband circuitry 704 (e.g., one or more of baseband processors 704a-d) may handle various radio control functions that enablecommunication with one or more radio networks via the RF circuitry 706.The radio control functions may include, but are not limited to, signalmodulation/demodulation, encoding/decoding, radio frequency shifting,etc. In some implementations, baseband circuitry 604 may be associatedwith storage medium 703 or with another storage medium.

In embodiments where the electronic device 704 is implemented in,incorporates, or is otherwise part of an LTE-LAA transmission point, thebaseband circuitry 104 may be to: identify one or more parametersrelated to the LTE-LAA transmission point, wherein the LTE-LAAtransmission point is in a network that includes a plurality of LTE-LAAtransmission points, respective LTE-LAA transmission points havingrespective parameters; and identify, based on a listen-before-talk (LBT)procedure related to identification of channel occupancy status ofrespective LTE-LAA transmission points in the plurality of LTE-LAAtransmission points that the LTE-LAA transmission point has anun-occupied channel. RF circuitry 706 may be to transmit a signal basedon the identification.

In some embodiments, modulation/demodulation circuitry of the basebandcircuitry 704 may include Fast-Fourier Transform (FFT), precoding,and/or constellation mapping/demapping functionality. In someembodiments, encoding/decoding circuitry of the baseband circuitry 704may include convolution, tail-biting convolution, turbo, Viterbi, and/orLow Density Parity Check (LDPC) encoder/decoder functionality.Embodiments of modulation/demodulation and encoder/decoder functionalityare not limited to these examples and may include other suitablefunctionality in other embodiments. In some embodiments, the basebandcircuitry 704 may include elements of a protocol stack such as, forexample, elements of an evolved universal terrestrial radio accessnetwork (EUTRAN) protocol including, for example, physical (PHY), mediaaccess control (MAC), radio link control (RLC), packet data convergenceprotocol (PDCP), and/or radio resource control (RRC) elements. A centralprocessing unit (CPU) 704e of the baseband circuitry 704 may beconfigured to run elements of the protocol stack for signaling of thePHY, MAC, RLC, PDCP and/or RRC layers. In some embodiments, the basebandcircuitry may include one or more audio digital signal processor(s)(DSP) 704 f. The audio DSP(s) 704 f may be include elements forcompression/decompression and echo cancellation and may include othersuitable processing elements in other embodiments.

Baseband circuitry 704 may further include memory/storage 704 g. Thememory/storage 704 g may be used to load and store data and/orinstructions for operations performed by the processors of the basebandcircuitry 704. Memory/storage 704 g may particularly include anon-transitory memory. Memory/storage for one embodiment may include anycombination of suitable volatile memory and/or non-volatile memory. Thememory/storage 704 g may include any combination of various levels ofmemory/storage including, but not limited to, read-only memory (ROM)having embedded software instructions (e.g., firmware), random accessmemory (e.g., dynamic random access memory (DRAM)), cache, buffers, etc.The memory/storage 704 g may be shared among the various processors ordedicated to particular processors.

Components of the baseband circuitry may be suitably combined in asingle chip, a single chipset, or disposed on a same circuit board insome embodiments. In some embodiments, some or all of the constituentcomponents of the baseband circuitry 704 and the application circuitry702 may be implemented together such as, for example, on a system on achip (SOC).

In some embodiments, the baseband circuitry 704 may provide forcommunication compatible with one or more radio technologies. Forexample, in some embodiments, the baseband circuitry 704 may supportcommunication with an evolved universal terrestrial radio access network(EUTRAN) and/or other wireless metropolitan area networks (WMAN), awireless local area network (WLAN), a wireless personal area network(WPAN). Embodiments in which the baseband circuitry 704 is configured tosupport radio communications of more than one wireless protocol may bereferred to as multi-mode baseband circuitry.

RF circuitry 706 may enable communication with wireless networks usingmodulated electromagnetic radiation through a non-solid medium. Invarious embodiments, the RF circuitry 706 may include switches, filters,amplifiers, etc. to facilitate the communication with the wirelessnetwork. RF circuitry 706 may include a receive signal path which mayinclude circuitry to down-convert RF signals received from the FEMcircuitry 708 and provide baseband signals to the baseband circuitry704. RF circuitry 706 may also include a transmit signal path which mayinclude circuitry to up-convert baseband signals provided by thebaseband circuitry 704 and provide RF output signals to the FEMcircuitry 708 for transmission.

In some embodiments, the RF circuitry 706 may include a receive signalpath and a transmit signal path. The receive signal path of the RFcircuitry 706 may include mixer circuitry 706 a, amplifier circuitry 706b and filter circuitry 706 c. The transmit signal path of the RFcircuitry 706 may include filter circuitry 706 c and mixer circuitry 706a. RF circuitry 706 may also include synthesizer circuitry 706 d forsynthesizing a frequency for use by the mixer circuitry 706 a of thereceive signal path and the transmit signal path. In some embodiments,the mixer circuitry 706 a of the receive signal path may be configuredto down-convert RF signals received from the FEM circuitry 708 based onthe synthesized frequency provided by synthesizer circuitry 706 d. Theamplifier circuitry 706 b may be configured to amplify thedown-converted signals and the filter circuitry 706 c may be a low-passfilter (LPF) or band-pass filter (BPF) configured to remove unwantedsignals from the down-converted signals to generate output basebandsignals.

Output baseband signals may be provided to the baseband circuitry 704for further processing. In some embodiments, the output baseband signalsmay be zero-frequency baseband signals, although this is not arequirement. In some embodiments, mixer circuitry 706 a of the receivesignal path may comprise passive mixers, although the scope of theembodiments is not limited in this respect.

In some embodiments, the mixer circuitry 706 a of the transmit signalpath may be configured to up-convert input baseband signals based on thesynthesized frequency provided by the synthesizer circuitry 706 d togenerate RF output signals for the FEM circuitry 708. The basebandsignals may be provided by the baseband circuitry 704 and may befiltered by filter circuitry 706 c. The filter circuitry 706 c mayinclude a low-pass filter (LPF), although the scope of the embodimentsis not limited in this respect.

In some embodiments, the mixer circuitry 706 a of the receive signalpath and the mixer circuitry 706 a of the transmit signal path mayinclude two or more mixers and may be arranged for quadraturedownconversion and/or upconversion respectively. In some embodiments,the mixer circuitry 706 a of the receive signal path and the mixercircuitry 706 a of the transmit signal path may include two or moremixers and may be arranged for image rejection (e.g., Hartley imagerejection). In some embodiments, the mixer circuitry 706 a of thereceive signal path and the mixer circuitry 706 a may be arranged fordirect downconversion and/or direct upconversion, respectively. In someembodiments, the mixer circuitry 706 a of the receive signal path andthe mixer circuitry 706 a of the transmit signal path may be configuredfor super-heterodyne operation.

In some embodiments, the output baseband signals and the input basebandsignals may be analog baseband signals, although the scope of theembodiments is not limited in this respect. In some alternateembodiments, the output baseband signals and the input baseband signalsmay be digital baseband signals. In these alternate embodiments, the RFcircuitry 706 may include analog-to-digital converter (ADC) anddigital-to-analog converter (DAC) circuitry and the baseband circuitry704 may include a digital baseband interface to communicate with the RFcircuitry 706.

In some dual-mode embodiments, a separate radio IC circuitry may beprovided for processing signals for each spectrum, although the scope ofthe embodiments is not limited in this respect.

In some embodiments, the synthesizer circuitry 706 d may be afractional-N synthesizer or a fractional N/N+6 synthesizer, although thescope of the embodiments is not limited in this respect as other typesof frequency synthesizers may be suitable. For example, synthesizercircuitry 706 d may be a delta-sigma synthesizer, a frequencymultiplier, or a synthesizer comprising a phase-locked loop with afrequency divider.

The synthesizer circuitry 706 d may be configured to synthesize anoutput frequency for use by the mixer circuitry 706 a of the RFcircuitry 706 based on a frequency input and a divider control input. Insome embodiments, the synthesizer circuitry 706 d may be a fractionalN/N+6 synthesizer.

In some embodiments, frequency input may be provided by avoltage-controlled oscillator (VCO), although that is not a requirement.Divider control input may be provided by either the baseband circuitry704 or the applications processor 702 depending on the desired outputfrequency. In some embodiments, a divider control input (e.g., N) may bedetermined from a look-up table based on a channel indicated by theapplications processor 702.

Synthesizer circuitry 706 d of the RF circuitry 706 may include adivider, a delay-locked loop (DLL), a multiplexer and a phaseaccumulator. In some embodiments, the divider may be a dual modulusdivider (DMD) and the phase accumulator may be a digital phaseaccumulator (DPA). In some embodiments, the DMD may be configured todivide the input signal by either N or N+6 (e.g., based on a carry out)to provide a fractional division ratio. In some example embodiments, theDLL may include a set of cascaded, tunable, delay elements, a phasedetector, a charge pump and a D-type flip-flop. In these embodiments,the delay elements may be configured to break a VCO period up into Ndequal packets of phase, where Nd is the number of delay elements in thedelay line. In this way, the DLL provides negative feedback to helpensure that the total delay through the delay line is one VCO cycle.

In some embodiments, synthesizer circuitry 706 d may be configured togenerate a carrier frequency as the output frequency, while in otherembodiments, the output frequency may be a multiple of the carrierfrequency (e.g., twice the carrier frequency, four times the carrierfrequency) and used in conjunction with quadrature generator and dividercircuitry to generate multiple signals at the carrier frequency withmultiple different phases with respect to each other. In someembodiments, the output frequency may be a LO frequency (fLO). In someembodiments, the RF circuitry 706 may include an IQ/polar converter.

FEM circuitry 708 may include a receive signal path which may includecircuitry configured to operate on RF signals received from one or moreantennas 760, amplify the received signals and provide the amplifiedversions of the received signals to the RF circuitry 706 for furtherprocessing. FEM circuitry 708 may also include a transmit signal pathwhich may include circuitry configured to amplify signals fortransmission provided by the RF circuitry 706 for transmission by one ormore of the one or more antennas 760.

In some embodiments, the FEM circuitry 708 may include a TX/RX switch toswitch between transmit mode and receive mode operation. The FEMcircuitry may include a receive signal path and a transmit signal path.The receive signal path of the FEM circuitry may include a low-noiseamplifier (LNA) to amplify received RF signals and provide the amplifiedreceived RF signals as an output (e.g., to the RF circuitry 706). Thetransmit signal path of the FEM circuitry 708 may include a poweramplifier (PA) to amplify input RF signals (e.g., provided by RFcircuitry 706), and one or more filters to generate RF signals forsubsequent transmission (e.g., by one or more of the one or moreantennas 760.

In some embodiments, the electronic device 700 may include additionalelements such as, for example, memory/storage, display, camera, sensors,and/or input/output (I/O) interface. In some embodiments, the electronicdevice of FIG. 7 may be configured to perform one or more methods,processes, and/or techniques such as those described herein.

A number of examples, relating to implementations of the techniquesdescribed above, will next be given.

In a first example, an eNB that functions as a LTELAA transmission pointmay comprise circuitry to: adaptively determine an ED threshold value touse when performing a LBT operation, the adaptive determinationincluding selectively choosing the ED threshold value from at least twoor more possible ED threshold values; and transmit data, to UE, viaLTE-LAA downlink transmission, the transmission including performing theLBT operation using the adaptively determined ED threshold.

In example 2, the subject matter of the first example may furtherinclude circuitry to: initially set the ED threshold value to aconservative value; detect a presence of another transmission node; andchange the ED threshold value to an aggressive value when anothertransmission node is not detected at frequency components correspondingto the LTE-LAA downlink transmission or continue to keep theconservative value.

In example 3, the subject matter of the first example or any of theexamples described herein may further include an implementation whereinthe another transmission node includes a WiFi node.

In example 4, the subject matter of the first example or any of theexamples described herein may further include an implementation whereinthe eNB, when adaptively determining the ED threshold, further includescircuitry to: initially set the ED threshold value to an aggressivevalue; detect a presence of another transmission node; and change the EDthreshold value to a conservative value when another transmission nodeis detected at frequency components corresponding to the LTE-LAAdownlink transmission.

In example 5, the subject matter of examples 2 or 4, or any of theexamples herein may further include an implementation wherein the eNBoperates on a 20 Megahertz (MHz) channel and wherein the conservativevalue is −72 decibel-milliwatts (dBm) or −82 dBm and the aggressivevalue is −52 dBm.

In example 6, the subject matter of examples 2, 4, or 5, or any of theexamples herein may further include an implementation wherein the eNB,when detecting the presence of another transmission node, furtherincludes circuitry to: detect the presence of WiFi beacon frames; ordetect the presence of a WiFi preamble transmission.

In example 7, subject matter of examples 2, 4, or 5, or any of examplesherein may further include wherein the eNB, when detecting the presenceof another transmission node, further includes circuitry to: receive,from the UE, a report relating to a presence of a WiFi transmissionnode.

In example 8, the subject matter of example 7, or any of examples hereinmay further include wherein the report from the UE is receivedperiodically or is received based on an event that is detected at theUE.

In example 9, the subject matter of example 1, or any of the examplesherein may further include wherein the eNB transmits to the UE based ona transmit power value, and when adaptively determining the EDthreshold, the eNB further includes circuitry to: determine, for the UE,a modifier value; and proportionally modify the ED threshold value andthe transmit power value based on the modifier value.

In example 10, the subject matter of example 9, or any of the examplesherein may further include wherein the proportional modificationincludes inversely modifying the ED threshold value and the transmitpower value such that increases to the ED transmit power correspond todecreases in the transmit power value.

In an eleventh example, an eNB may comprise circuitry to: determinewhether a WiFi transmission node is detected in a vicinity of the eNB;determine an energy detection (ED) threshold value based on a result ofthe determination of whether the WiFi transmission node is detected;measure an amount of energy associated with an Long Term Evolution(LTE)-Licensed Assisted Access (LAA) channel; compare the measuredamount of energy to the determined ED threshold value; transmit data,using the channel, when the comparison indicates that the amount ofenergy associated with the channel is less than the ED threshold value;and refrain from transmitting the data when the comparison indicatesthat amount of energy associated with the channel is greater than the EDthreshold value.

In example 12, the subject matter of example 11, may further includewherein the eNB, when determining the ED threshold value, furtherincludes circuitry to: initially set the ED threshold value to aconservative value; and change the ED threshold value to an aggressivevalue when a WiFi transmission node is determined to not be in thevicinity of the eNB.

In example 13, the subject matter of example 11, or any of the examplesherein, may further include wherein the eNB, when determining the EDthreshold value, further includes circuitry to: initially set the EDthreshold value to an aggressive value; and change the ED thresholdvalue to a conservative value when the WiFi transmission node isdetermined to be in the vicinity of the eNB.

In example 14, the subject matter of examples 11 or 12, or any of theexamples herein, may further include wherein the eNB operates on a 20Megahertz (MHz) channel and wherein the conservative value is −72decibel-milliwatts (dBm) or −82 dBm and the aggressive value is −52 dBmor −62 dBm.

In example 15, the subject matter of examples 12, 13, or 14, or any ofthe examples herein, may further include wherein the eNB, whendetermining whether the WiFi transmission node is detected in a vicinityof the eNB, further includes circuitry to: detect the presence of WiFibeacon frames; or detect the presence of a WiFi preamble transmission.

In example 16, the subject matter of example 11, or any of the examplesherein, may further include wherein the eNB, when determining whetherthe WiFi transmission node is detected in a vicinity of the eNB, furtherincludes circuitry to: receive, from User Equipment (UE), a reportrelating to a presence of a WiFi transmission node.

In example 17, the subject matter of example 16, or any of examplesherein, may further include wherein the report from the UE is receivedperiodically or is received based on an event that is detected at theUE.

In example 18, the subject matter of example 11, or any of the examplesherein may further include wherein the eNB transmits to User Equipment(UE) based on a transmit power value, and when determining the EDthreshold, the eNB further includes circuitry to: determine, for the UE,a modifier value; and proportionally modify the ED threshold value andthe transmit power value based on the modifier value.

In example 19, the subject matter of example 18, or any of the examplesherein, may further include wherein the proportional modificationincludes inversely modifying the ED threshold value and the transmitpower value such that increases to the ED transmit power correspond todecreases in the transmit power value.

In a 20th example, a computer readable medium may contain programinstructions for causing one or more processors to: adaptively determinean energy detection (ED) threshold value to use when performing aListen-Before-Talk (LBT) operation, the adaptive determination includingselectively choosing the ED threshold value from at least two or morepossible ED threshold values; and transmit data, to User Equipment (UE),via Long Term Evolution (LTE)-Licensed Assisted Access (LAA) downlinktransmission, the transmission including performing the LBT operationusing the adaptively determined ED threshold.

In example 21, the subject matter of example 20 may further includewherein when adaptively determining the ED threshold, the computerreadable medium additionally includes program instructions for causingthe one or more processors to: initially set the ED threshold value to aconservative value; detect a presence of another transmission node; andchange the ED threshold value to an aggressive value when anothertransmission node is not detected at frequency components correspondingto the LTE-LAA downlink transmission.

In example 22, the subject matter of example 20, or any of the examplesherein, wherein when adaptively determining the ED threshold, thecomputer readable medium additionally includes program instructions forcausing the one or more processors to: initially set the ED thresholdvalue to an aggressive value; detect a presence of another transmissionnode; and change the ED threshold value to a conservative value whenanother transmission node is detected at frequency componentscorresponding to the LTE-LAA downlink transmission.

In example 23, the subject matter of example 21 or 22, or any ofexamples herein, may further include wherein the eNB operates on a 20Megahertz (MHz) channel and wherein the conservative value is −72decibel-milliwatts (dBm) or −82 dBm and the aggressive value is −52 dBmor −62 dBm.

In example 24, the subject matter of examples 21, 22, or 23, or any ofthe examples herein, may further include wherein when adaptivelydetermining the ED threshold, the computer readable medium additionallyincludes program instructions for causing the one or more processors to:detect the presence of WiFi beacon frames; or detect the presence of aWiFi preamble transmission.

In example 25, the subject matter of example 20, or any of the examplesherein, may further include wherein the data is transmitted to the UEusing a transmit power value, and when adaptively determining the EDthreshold, the computer readable medium additionally includes programinstructions for causing the one or more processors to: determine, forthe UE, a modifier value; and proportionally modify the ED thresholdvalue and the transmit power value based on the modifier value.

In example 26, the subject matter of example 25, or any of the examplesherein, may further include wherein the proportional modificationincludes inversely modifying the ED threshold value and the transmitpower value such that increases to the ED transmit power correspond todecreases in the transmit power value.

In a twenty-seventh example, a UE may include circuitry to: determine anenergy detection (ED) threshold value to use when performing aListen-Before-Talk (LBT) operation before using an unlicensed frequencychannel for uplink transmissions to an LTE-LAA eNB; and transmit data,to the eNB, via LTE-LAA uplink transmission, the transmission includingperforming the LBT operation using the determined ED threshold.

In example 28, the subject matter of example 27, may further includewherein the ED threshold value is different than an ED threshold value,used by the eNB, for downlink LTE-LAA transmissions.

In example 29, the subject matter of example 27, or any of the examplesherein, may further include wherein the ED threshold value is determinedto be a same value as ED threshold value, used by the eNB, for downlinkLTE-LAA transmissions, plus a predetermined offset amount.

In example 30, the subject matter of example 27, or any of examplesherein, may further include wherein determining the ED threshold valueincludes receiving the ED threshold value, from the eNB, via DedicatedControl Information (DCI) using Layer 1 signaling.

In the preceding specification, various embodiments have been describedwith reference to the accompanying drawings. It will, however, beevident that various modifications and changes may be made thereto, andadditional embodiments may be implemented, without departing from thebroader scope as set forth in the claims that follow. The specificationand drawings are accordingly to be regarded in an illustrative ratherthan restrictive sense.

For example, while series of signals have been described with regard toFIGS. 2-5, the order of the signals may be modified in otherimplementations. Further, non-dependent signals may be performed inparallel.

It will be apparent that example aspects, as described above, may beimplemented in many different forms of software, firmware, and hardwarein the implementations illustrated in the figures. The actual softwarecode or specialized control hardware used to implement these aspectsshould not be construed as limiting. Thus, the operation and behavior ofthe aspects were described without reference to the specific softwarecode—it being understood that software and control hardware could bedesigned to implement the aspects based on the description herein.

Further, certain portions may be implemented as “logic” that performsone or more functions. This logic may include hardware, such as anapplication-specific integrated circuit (“ASIC”) or a field programmablegate array (“FPGA”), or a combination of hardware and software.

Even though particular combinations of features are recited in theclaims and/or disclosed in the specification, these combinations are notintended to limit the claims. In fact, many of these features may becombined in ways not specifically recited in the claims and/or disclosedin the specification.

No element, act, or instruction used in the present application shouldbe construed as critical or essential unless explicitly described assuch. An instance of the use of the term “and,” as used herein, does notnecessarily preclude the interpretation that the phrase “and/or” wasintended in that instance. Similarly, an instance of the use of the term“or,” as used herein, does not necessarily preclude the interpretationthat the phrase “and/or” was intended in that instance. Also, as usedherein, the article “a” is intended to include one or more items, andmay be used interchangeably with the phrase “one or more.” Where onlyone item is intended, the terms “one,” “single,” “only,” or similarlanguage is used.

What is claimed is:
 1. A User Equipment (UE) comprising circuitryconfigured to: set an energy detection threshold, wherein the energydetection threshold is set based on a higher layer parameter with whichthe UE is configured; determine whether a channel for License AssistedAccess (LAA) transmissions is idle, wherein the channel is idle whenpower detected by the UE is less than the energy detection threshold. 2.The UE of claim 1, wherein the higher layer parameter is indicated viaRadio Resource Control (RRC).
 3. The UE of claim 1, wherein the higherlayer parameter signals a value for the energy detection threshold, andwherein the UE is configured to set the energy detection threshold equalto the value signaled by the higher layer parameter.
 4. The UE of claim1, wherein the higher layer parameter signals an offset value to asecond energy detection threshold, wherein the UE is configured to setthe energy detection threshold by adjusting the second energy detectionthreshold according to the offset value signaled by the higher layerparameter.
 5. The UE of claim 4, wherein the second energy detectionthreshold is equal to −72 dBm.
 6. The UE of claim 1, wherein the energydetection threshold is less than or equal to a maximum value of −52 dBm.7. The UE of claim 1, wherein, the UE is further configured to transmita Physical Uplink Shared Channel (PUSCH) transmission over the channelin response to determining that the channel is idle.
 8. An apparatusconfigured to be employed in a User Equipment (UE), comprising: basebandcircuitry configured to: set an energy detection threshold, wherein theenergy detection threshold is set based on a higher layer parameter withwhich the UE is configured; determine whether a channel for LicenseAssisted Access (LAA) transmissions is idle, wherein the channel is idlewhen power detected by the UE is less than the energy detectionthreshold.
 9. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein the higher layerparameter is indicated via Radio Resource Control (RRC).
 10. Theapparatus of claim 8, wherein the higher layer parameter signals a valuefor the energy detection threshold, and wherein the baseband circuitryis configured to set the energy detection threshold equal to the valuesignaled by the higher layer parameter.
 11. The apparatus of claim 8,wherein the higher layer parameter signals an offset value to a secondenergy detection threshold, wherein the baseband circuitry is configuredto set the energy detection threshold by adjusting the second energydetection threshold according to the offset value signaled by the higherlayer parameter.
 12. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the secondenergy detection threshold is equal to −72 dBm.
 13. The apparatus ofclaim 8, wherein the energy detection threshold is less than or equal toa maximum value of −52 dBm.
 14. A non-transitory machine-readable mediumcomprising instructions that, when executed, cause a User Equipment (UE)to: set an energy detection threshold, wherein the energy detectionthreshold is set based on a higher layer parameter with which the UE isconfigured; determine whether a channel for License Assisted Access(LAA) transmissions is idle, wherein the channel is idle when powerdetected by the UE is less than the energy detection threshold.
 15. Thenon-transitory machine-readable medium of claim 14, wherein the higherlayer parameter is indicated via Radio Resource Control (RRC).
 16. Thenon-transitory machine-readable medium of claim 14, wherein the higherlayer parameter signals a value for the energy detection threshold, andwherein the instructions, when executed, further cause the UE to set theenergy detection threshold equal to the value signaled by the higherlayer parameter.
 17. The non-transitory machine-readable medium of claim14, wherein the higher layer parameter signals an offset value to asecond energy detection threshold, wherein the wherein the instructions,when executed, further cause the UE to set the energy detectionthreshold by adjusting the second energy detection threshold accordingto the offset value signaled by the higher layer parameter.
 18. Thenon-transitory machine-readable medium of claim 14, wherein the secondenergy detection threshold is equal to −72 dBm.
 19. The non-transitorymachine-readable medium of claim 14, wherein the energy detectionthreshold is less than or equal to a maximum value of −52 dBm.
 20. Thenon-transitory machine-readable medium of claim 14, wherein, theinstructions, when executed, further cause the UE to transmit a PhysicalUplink Shared Channel (PUSCH) transmission over the channel in responseto determining that the channel is idle.